Ulcinj

I had grown quite close with everyone at the hostel over the few days I was there, but eventually, it was time to say goodbye. Unfortunately, most people were heading north towards Croatia, while I was heading south towards Albania. That meant there was a good chance we wouldn't cross paths again. A few people were heading south with me, though, so I am hopeful to run into some of them again. The upside was that I came away with many, many recommendations for places to visit in Albania. Everyone seemed to have their own suggestions, so I was confident I'd be able to make the most of my time there.

After gathering all our shit and getting ready to leave, we said our goodbyes, exchanged Instagrams and headed off. Connor, a Canadian guy from the hostel, was also heading to Ulcinj. I'd booked myself a private hotel for a couple of nights, though, as I desperately needed some time to recover after the last few days of hiking. I told Connor that if he was doing anything, he should let me know, and I'd see what my energy levels were like.

After about five hours on the bus, we finally arrived in Ulcinj. We walked towards our respective accommodations before eventually parting ways. I eventually found my hotel - once again, at the top of a fucking hill - and dropped all my stuff off. After days of hiking, I had absolutely no interest in doing anything remotely adventurous. The only thing I cared about was food.

So I went on the hunt and stocked up properly. I bought snacks and noodles from the shops, then grabbed pasta and a pizza dish from a restaurant. Between all of that, I had enough food to keep me going for the next couple of days without having to leave my room too much. These next two days were officially dedicated to recovery.

The last few days of mountains, 25 km hikes, ice caves and countless kilometres of walking, I had absolutely earned it.

So don't expect too much from the next couple of entries - Ulcinj was my recovery arc.Read more